The bridge of light stretched endlessly beneath Kael's feet, pulsing with the heartbeat of creation itself. Each step echoed like a drumbeat across eternity. Above him, time shimmered like a broken sky — layers of reality stacked on top of one another, folding and bending like ribbons in a cosmic wind.

Jorah followed close behind, his hand never leaving the Chrono Blade. The air felt heavier with every step, thick with static and whispers that didn't belong to either of them.

"You hearing that?" Jorah asked, glancing around warily. "Because I swear I just heard someone call my name… in Latin. And I don't even know Latin."

Kael didn't answer. His eyes were half-glazed, golden irises flickering with moving symbols. The voices weren't just sounds — they were memories. His memories.

You could have been the savior.

You could have ruled the endless dawn.

You could have stayed dead.

Kael stumbled. The bridge quaked beneath his feet, ripples of energy radiating outward. Jorah lunged forward, grabbing his arm. "Hey! Don't do that god-thing where you pass out and explode everything again!"

Kael's expression was distant. "They're calling me…"

"Yeah, yeah, the creepy whisper choir, I hear them too," Jorah said. "Ignore it."

"I can't." Kael's voice trembled with a tone Jorah hadn't heard before — fear. "They're not just echoes. They're me."

Jorah blinked. "You mean—"

"My past selves," Kael whispered. "All the versions that died in the loops. The tyrant who enslaved time. The coward who begged the Architects for mercy. The hero who failed. They're all still out there — echoes in the flow."

The bridge darkened as if the void itself leaned closer to listen. Shapes began to flicker in the distance — silhouettes walking parallel to them, faint, translucent. One version of Kael wore armor made of obsidian glass, another bore wings of shattered light. A third walked barefoot through the air, eyes hollow.

"Kael…" Jorah murmured. "They look—"

"Alive," Kael finished. "But they're not. They're fragments. Versions of me left behind every time I died and rewrote the loop."

One of the shades turned its head. Its golden eyes locked onto Kael's.

"You stole our lives," it hissed. "You used us to climb higher."

Kael froze. "That's not true."

Another shade appeared, stepping closer — this one regal, draped in crimson. Its voice dripped with venom. "You think you're the chosen one? You're just the last mistake."

The bridge vibrated violently. Jorah drew the Chrono Blade, its edge cutting through the whispering air. "Okay, ghosts of Kael past, time-out! You don't get to monologue us to death!"

But the shades didn't stop. They multiplied — dozens, then hundreds, surrounding the bridge in an endless ring of golden-eyed reflections. Each spoke in Kael's own voice.

You failed the boy.

You betrayed the witch.

You became the monster you swore to destroy.

You laughed while the world burned.

Kael's breathing quickened. He clutched his temples as the voices grew louder, merging into a single roar. The golden cracks on his arms flared violently, spilling light into the void.

"Stop!" Jorah shouted, grabbing his shoulders. "Kael, you're losing control—"

"I can't!" Kael gasped. "They're inside me! Every version that ever was — every loop, every failure — they want out!"

The bridge exploded in light.

Jorah was thrown backward, tumbling through air that wasn't air, through a cascade of shimmering memories. He landed hard, sliding across the fractured surface of the bridge. When he looked up — Kael was gone.

"Kael!"

A voice answered, but it wasn't Kael's.

It was thousands of them.

Kael stood at the center of a storm of golden light, his body flickering between countless forms. His laughter — wild, broken, divine — echoed through the void.

"You can't fight what you are," said one voice.

"You can only become all of us," said another.

The storm closed in.

Jorah forced himself up, teeth gritted. "Nope. Not happening. You've come too far to start your villain arc now!"

He raised the Chrono Blade and plunged it into the bridge. Time itself shuddered. The blade's pulse synchronized with Kael's heartbeat, creating a stabilizing resonance that cut through the chaos.

Kael's head snapped toward him, eyes wide with recognition — and pain.

"Jorah…?"

"Yeah, it's me!" Jorah shouted over the roaring storm. "Your favorite idiot sidekick! Now stop arguing with yourself and listen to me!"

The fragments wavered. The countless Kaels turned their heads toward Jorah. Their expressions ranged from sorrow to rage to awe.

"You think you can contain eternity?" one sneered.

"No," Jorah said, voice steady. "But I can remind it who it's supposed to be."

He slammed his hand over his heart. "You're Kael Vorrion! The guy who defied the gods! The one who laughed at fate, remember? You didn't do it to win — you did it to live."

The words hit Kael like a shockwave.

The storm slowed. The golden light dimmed, swirling inward as Kael clutched his chest, breathing raggedly. "Live…" he whispered.

Jorah stepped forward, the Chrono Blade glowing brighter in his grip. "You're not all of them. You're not the monster, or the god, or the ghost. You're the one who chose to break the loop."

Kael's eyes met his — human, just for a moment. "And what if I forget again?"

"Then I'll remind you again," Jorah said, grinning through the chaos. "That's what co-pilots are for."

The light pulsed one final time — and then collapsed inward.

When the dust cleared, Kael was on his knees, breathing hard. The bridge was intact again, the void quiet. The shades were gone. Only silence remained — and a faint shimmer of gold in Kael's veins.

Jorah approached carefully. "You good?"

Kael looked up, his grin tired but real. "I… remember. All of them. Every life, every death. And for the first time… they're quiet."

Jorah smirked. "Good. Because I was about to start charging for emotional therapy."

Kael laughed weakly, shaking his head. "You would."

The void rippled ahead of them, revealing the distant glow of the Origin Point — brighter now, beckoning.

Kael rose to his feet, renewed fire in his eyes. "It's time to finish this."

Jorah lifted the Chrono Blade. "Lead the way, God-Wound."

Kael smiled — sharp, alive, unstoppable. "Gladly."

Together, they stepped forward into the light.

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